Air washing and conditioning apparatus.



W. H. CARRIER.

AIR WASHING AND CONDITIONING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED JAN.2I, I910.

Patented May 4, 1915.

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W. H. CARRIER.

AIR WASHING AND CONDITIONING APPARATUS APPLICATION FILED 1AN.2|,1910.

1,138,081 Patented May 4, 1915.

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illill idlD @Thdlllfi 'WILLIS H. CARRIER, 0F BUFFALU, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO BUFFALQ FORGE COMEfiNY,

' GE BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

AIR WASHING AND CUNDITIONING APPARATUS.

Application filed January 21, .1910. Serial No. 539,4t11.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, WILLIS H. CARRIER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Air Washing and Conditioning Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to air and as washing, and conditioning apparatus of that sort in which the air or gas is caused to flow through a group of baflies or surfaces which are kept wet by water or other suitable liquid flowing over them, whereby the air or gas is brought into contact with the water so that the impurities are caught and carried off by the water.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide an efficient air and gas washing apparatus of simple, compact and inexpensive construction which will have a large capacity and be economical in operation, and in which the baffles or surfaces over which the liquid flows are so arranged as to be uniformly and thoroughly wetted and to cause a positive and forcible impingement of the air or gas against the wetted surfaces as well as the passage thereof through the liquid flowing from one to another of the baffies or surfaces, thereby causing a very intimate contact of the air or gas with the Water and insuring a thorough and complete cleaning of the same. The apparatus is especially suited for purifying air and gases which are heavily laden with dust or impurities, such, for example, as the air from coal breakers. The apparatus will or will not have a humidifying and tempering action on the air or gas, depending upon the relative temperatures of the'air or gas and liquid being used, and it is therefore adapted to be used for conditioning air and gases as regards their humidity and temperature as well as for cleaning them.

Another object of the invention is to so arrange the wetted surfacesor bailles as to give the maximum area of wetted surface in an apparatus ofmoderate dimensions without unduly increasing the resistance to the flow of the air orgas.

ln the accompanying drawings, consisting of two sheets: Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of anair and gas washing or con- ;Specification of Letters Patent.

ire-tented a, 193th.

ditioning apparatus embodying the invention. Fig. 2 is a plan, partly in section, thereof. Fig. 3 is a fragmentary section, on an enlarged scale, of the washing surfaces or baffles. Fig. 4 is a sectional elevation of an apparatus of modified construction. Fig; 5 is a transverse sectional elevation thereof in line 55, Fig. i.

Like reference characters refer to like parts in the several figures.

Referring first to the construction shown in Figs. 13, A represents a casing or chamber which is open at one end a for the admission of air or gas, which is caused to pass through the casing by a blower or other means, preferably connecting with the opposite end of the casing.

Within the chamber or casing A is ar ranged a group of bafies, bars or plates C which extend substantially horizontally across the chamber or casing from side to side thereof between vertical transverse partitions or walls D D. Cne of these partitions or walls D extends upwardly from the lower portion of the casing in front of the group of baiiles, while the other partition or wall, D, extends dbwnwarclly from the top of the casing in rear of the group of battles so that the air or gas flowing through the casing is caused to pass in a downwarddirection through the group of battles, entering the group over the front partition or wall D and leaving it beneath the rear partition or wall D.

E represents spray nozzles arranged to discharge water or other suitable liquid in a spray on the uppermost bafies, bars or plates of the group, a sufficient number of spray nozzles being employed to thoroughly and uniformly wet the battles, bars or plates. in the construction shown, the nozzles are arranged on horizontal pipes which extend transversely across the casing over and parallel with the baffles, bars or plates and are connected at their ends to a supply pipe 6. The spray water or liquid is supplied to the nozzles by a pump F which takes the water from a collecting basin or well in the bottom of the casing, into which it flows from the battles, whereby the liquid is circulated and thus repeatedly used, but where water is used and it is not necessary toeoonornize, the water can be supplied under suitable pressure from the service mains, or other source of supply.

The front partition depends into the water in the bottom of the casing so as to prevent the air or gas from passing under it, and a screen 9 is preferably employed at the bottom of this partition for straining the liquid oing to the pump.

The-ba es preferably consist of channel bars having flat top surfaces and depending flanges, and are arranged in horizontal rows with the bars of one row staggered with relation to those in the next row, that is, with the bars of one row over or opposite to the spaces between the bars of the next row. The bars are wider than the spaces between adjacent bars in a row so that each bar, except the end bars, in one row overlaps, or has its opposite edges located vertically over the two adjacent bars in the next lower row. By reason of this relation of the bars the water flows from the. opposite side edges of the bars in one horizontal row onto the tops of the bars in the next row, spreads out over the top surfaces of the latter bars and flows.

from the opposite sides or edges of these bars onto the tops of the bars in the next lower row, and so on to the lowermost bars, from which the water flows downwardly into the collecting basin in the bottom of the casing. The air or gas, which passes downwardly through the group of bars, is caused to impinge on the upper surfaces of the bars in each row and is then deflected laterally in opposite directions from the top surfaces of the bars in one row through the films of water flowing from the bars in the next row above, before passing downwardly through the spaces between the bars of the former row, as-indicated by the arrows in Fig. 3. As the horizontal distance between adjacent bars is less than the width of a bar, and is also preferably somewhat less than the combined vertical distance between the opposite edges of each bar in one row and the two bars beneath it in the next lower row, the

air or gas passes through the vertical passages between the bars with considerable velocity and is caused to impinge postively and forcibly on the wetted top surfaces of the bars in addition to passing through the films of water flowing from one row of bars to the next. The air or gas is thus broken up into many small currents and has its direction repeatedly changed in passing between and impinging upon the bars, which produces such a thorough and intimate contact of all portions of theair or gas with the water that the water removes all particles of dust or impurities from the air or gas and leaves it clean.

The baflies or bars are preferably grouped so that the rear end of the group is higher than the front end, so that the area of the air spaces between the front end of the group and the top of the casing and between the rear end of the group and the bottom of the casing will be greater than would be possible with a casing of the same dimension if the same number of bars similarly spaced were arranged with the front and rear ends of the group at the same elevation. This way of grouping the baflies or bars also insures a more even distribution of the air or gas throughout the group.

H represents an eliminator for removing the free moisture from the air or gas. The eliminator shown is of well known construction consisting of parallel spaced upright zig-zag plates between which the air passes. This construction is preferred as it is very eflicient, but any other suitable means for the purpose can be employed.

The-construction of the apparatus above described is preferred in installationswhere the vertical space for the casing is limited and there is adequate horizontal space. If the horizontal space instead of the vertical space for the casing is limited, the apparatus is preferably constructed as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, in which the chamber or casing A is divided into two compartments by an upright partition I having an ofiset or inclined intermediate portion, and the bafiies or bars C are arranged in two groups, one located in the wide upper portion of one compartment and the other in the wide lower portion of-the other compartment. By thus grouping the baflles the resistance to the passage of the air or gas is less than it would be with the same number of baifies or bars arranged in a single group of greater height in acasing of the same dimensions. The eleminator shown in this construction consists of a group of horizontal V-shaped bars or troughs K arranged below each group of bafiles or bars C. These eleminator bars terminate short of the sides of the casing, as shown in Fig. 4, to allow the escape of the water from the bars at their opposite ends. The relative arrangement and spacing of the baffles or bars C in each group in this eonstruction is substantially the same as in the construction first described.

1 claim as my invention:

In an air and gas washing apparatus, the combination of a chamber, a group of a large number of relatively long narrow bafiies having substantially flat tops and depending side fianges, said bafiies being arranged substantially horizontally in substantially horizontal rows in said chamber with spaces between thb baflies, there being a considerable number of baflles in each of a plurality of successive rows, said bafiles being wider than the spaces between the baflies in'each row and arranged with the bafiies 1n one row opposite the spaces between the bafiies in the next row,"the end bafiles in at least some of the rows being arranged close to the Walls of the chamber at each side of the Water flowing over said bafiies, subthereof, means for distributing liquid over stantially as set forth. 10 the upper portion of said group of baflies, Witness my hand, this 10th day of J anuand means for causing the air or gas to flow ary, '1910.

downwardly through said group of baflies WILLIS H. CARRIER. whereby the air entering the chamber is- Witnesses:

broken up into a multiplicity of small cur- WM. L. Fox, rents and caused to repeatedly cross the path 0. A. BOOTH. 

